THE KINDEST CUT
The tiny rhino calf made her way along the dusty dirt road, sprinting as if her life depended on it. For all she knew, it did.
Sheʼd just witnessed her mother being darted and now the noisy flying machine was chasing her. No taller than a medium sized dog, she was small but solid; one day she would pack the power of a tank.
Right now, though, she was just a tiny calf, squealing in terror.
The chasing chopper dipped its nose, increasing the volume and spray of dust, the tumult from its rotor blades creating in the rhino a blind panic.
As she rounded the corner, the telltale pink fluff of the tranquiliser dart protruding from her rump revealed that she, too, had been darted. She wouldnʼt be on her feet much longer.
We stood watching this unfold, a posse of four journos, guests of Toyota for two days of behind-thescenes insight into rhino dehorning in Pilanesberg National Park. The car manufacturer has, over the years, ploughed several million rand into conservation, not only donating money and raising sponsorships to protect rhinos and other wildlife, but also by donating a vehicle or two – and then offering service plans with no apparent expiration date.
We joined the anti-poaching unit willingly, of course, but what we witnessed was not pretty. After all, these guys do.
